Amended in Assembly June 15, 2014

Amended in Senate April 23, 2014

Senate Bill No. 1246

Introduced by Senator Lieu

(Principal coauthor: Assembly Member Bonilla)

February 20, 2014

An act to amend Sections 4928, 4934, 4935, 4938, 4944, 4949, and 4970 of, to amend and repeal Section 4973 of, to amend, repeal, and add Section 4939 of, to add Section 4933.5 to, and to add and repeal Section 4927.5 of, the Business and Professions Code, relating to acupuncture.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 1246, as amended, Lieu. Acupuncture.

Existing law, the Acupuncture Licensure Act, provides for the licensure and regulation of the practice of acupuncture by the Acupuncture Board, within the Department of Consumer Affairs. Existing law authorizes the board, with the approval of the Director of Consumer Affairs, to employ personnel necessary to administer the Acupuncture Licensure Act, including an executive officer who is exempt from civil service. Existing law repeals begin delete these end delete begin insert the end insert provisions begin insert establishing the board and authority for it to employee personnel end insert on January 1, 2015.

This bill would remove the repeal date with respect to the board’s authority to employ personnel. The bill would also extend the operation of the board and its authority to hire an executive officer exempt from civil service until January 1, 2017. The bill would require that the executive officer appointed on or after January 1, 2015, not have served as the executive officer of the board at any time prior to January 1, 2015.

Existing law requires the board to establish standards for the approval of schools and colleges offering education and training in the practice of an acupuncturist, as specified. Existing law requires the board to issue a license to practice acupuncture to a person who files an application, pays a fee, and among other requirements, completes an educational and training program approved by the board.

Commencing January 1, 2017, this bill would eliminate the requirement that the board approve schools and colleges offering education and training in the practice of acupuncture and would instead begin delete require that an approved school or college, end delete begin insert define an “approved educational and training program,” end insert for purposes of begin delete licensure, be end delete begin insert licensure as an acupuncturist, as a school or college that: (1) offers curriculum that has been submitted to and approved by the board and includes at least 3,000 hours of which at least 2,050 hours are didactic and laboratory training, and at least 950 hours are supervised clinical instruction; (2) is approved by the Bureau of Private Postsecondary Education; and (3) is end insert accredited begin insert or granted candidacy status end insert by the Accreditation Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine. The bill would begin insert require the board, within 30 days of receiving curriculum submitted by a school or collage pursuant to these provisions, to review the curriculum, determine whether the curriculum satisfies the board’s requirements, and notify the school or college, the Accreditation Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine, and Bureau of Private and Postsecondary Education of whether the board has approved the curriculum. The bill would also require the board to establish standards for the acceptance of educational training and clinical experience received outside the United States and Canada, and would end insert make related conforming changes.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Section 4927.5 is added to the Business and
Professions Code, to read:

4927.5.  

(a) For purposes of this chapter, “approved educational
and training program” means a program approved by the board
pursuant to Section 4939.

(b) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2017,
and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
is enacted before January 1, 2017, deletes or extends that date.

SEC. 2.  

Section 4927.5 is added to the Business and Professions
Code, to read:

4927.5.  

(a) For purposes of this chapter, “approved educational
and training program” means a school or college offering education
and training in the practice of an acupuncturist that meets begin delete both end delete begin insert all end insert
of the following requirements:

begin delete

(1) Is accredited by the Accreditation Commission for
Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine.

end delete begin delete

(2) Within three years of initial accreditation under paragraph
(1), has

end delete begin insert

(1) Offers curriculum that includes at least 3,000 hours of which
at least 2,050 hours are didactic and laboratory training, and at
least 950 hours are supervised clinical instruction. Has submitted
that curriculum to the board, and has received board-approval of
the curriculum.

end insert

begin insert (2) end insert begin insert   end insert begin insert Has end insert received full institutional approval under Article 6
(commencing with Section 94885) of Chapter 8 of Part 59 of
Division 10 of Title 3 of the Education Code in the field of
traditional Asian medicine, or in the case of institutions located
outside of this state, approval by the appropriate governmental
educational authority using standards equivalent to those of Article
6 (commencing with Section 94885) of Chapter 8 of Part 59 of
Division 10 of Title 3 of the Education Code.

begin insert

(3) Is accredited or has been granted candidacy status by the
Accreditation Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine.

end insert begin insert

(b) Within 30 days after receiving curriculum pursuant to
paragraph (1), the board shall review the curriculum, determine
whether the curriculum satisfies the requirements established by
the board, and notify the school or college, the Accreditation
Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine, and Bureau
of Private and Postsecondary Education of whether the board has
approved the curriculum.

end insert begin delete

(b)

end delete

begin insert (c) end insert  This section shall become operative on January 1, 2017.

SEC. 3.  

Section 4928 of the Business and Professions Code is
amended to read:

4928.  

(a) The Acupuncture Board, which consists of seven
members, shall enforce and administer this chapter.

(b) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2017,
and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
is enacted before January 1, 2017, deletes or extends that date.

(c) Notwithstanding any other law, the repeal of this section
renders the board subject to review by the appropriate policy
committees of the Legislature.

SEC. 4.  

Section 4933.5 is added to the Business and Professions
Code, to read:

4933.5.  

The board, by and with the approval of the director,
may employ personnel necessary for the administration of this
chapter.

SEC. 5.  

Section 4934 of the Business and Professions Code is
amended to read:

4934.  

(a) The board, by and with the approval of the director,
may appoint an executive officer who is exempt from the State
Civil Service Act (Part 2 (commencing with Section 18500) of
Division 5 of Title 2 of the Government Code). The executive
officer appointed on or after January 1, 2015, shall not have served
as the executive officer of the board at any time prior to January
1, 2015.

(b) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2017,
and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
is enacted before January 1, 2017, deletes or extends that date.

SEC. 6.  

Section 4935 of the Business and Professions Code is
amended to read:

4935.  

(a) (1) It is a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of not
less than one hundred dollars ($100) and not more than two
thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500), or by imprisonment in a
county jail not exceeding one year, or by both that fine and
imprisonment, for any person who does not hold a current and
valid license to practice acupuncture under this chapter or to hold
himself or herself out as practicing or engaging in the practice of
acupuncture.

(2) It is a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of not less than
one hundred dollars ($100) and not more than two thousand five
hundred dollars ($2,500), or by imprisonment in a county jail not
exceeding one year, or by both that fine and imprisonment, for
any person to fraudulently buy, sell, or obtain a license to practice
acupuncture, or to violate the provisions of this chapter.

(b) Notwithstanding any other law, any person, other than a
physician and surgeon, a dentist, or a podiatrist, who is not licensed
under this article but is licensed under Division 2 (commencing
with Section 500), who practices acupuncture involving the
application of a needle to the human body, performs any
acupuncture technique or method involving the application of a
needle to the human body, or directs, manages, or supervises
another person in performing acupuncture involving the application
of a needle to the human body is guilty of a misdemeanor.

(c) A person holds himself or herself out as engaging in the
practice of acupuncture by the use of any title or description of
services incorporating the words “acupuncture,” “acupuncturist,”
“certified acupuncturist,” “licensed acupuncturist,” “Asian
medicine,” “oriental medicine,” or any combination of those words,
phrases, or abbreviations of those words or phrases, or by
representing that he or she is trained, experienced, or an expert in
the field of acupuncture, Asian medicine, or Chinese medicine.

(d) Subdivision (a) shall not prohibit a person from
administering acupuncture treatment as part of his or her
educational training if he or she:

(1) Is engaged in a course or tutorial program in acupuncture,
as provided in this chapter; or

(2) Is a graduate of an approved educational and training
program and participating in a postgraduate review course that
does not exceed one year in duration at an approved educational
and training program.

SEC. 7.  

Section 4938 of the Business and Professions Code is
amended to read:

4938.  

The board shall issue a license to practice acupuncture
to any person who makes an application and meets the following
requirements:

(a) Is at least 18 years of age.

(b) Furnishes satisfactory evidence of completion of one of the
following:

(1) An approved educational and training program. begin insert An individual
who graduates in the first or second graduating class of a school
or college that has been granted candidacy status by the
Accreditation Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine
shall be deemed to have completed an approved educational and
training program. end insert

(2) Satisfactory completion of a tutorial program in the practice
of an acupuncturist which is approved by the board.

(3) In the case of an applicant who has completed education
and training outside the United States and Canada, documented
educational training and clinical experience that meets the standards
established pursuant to Sections 4939 and 4941.

(c) Passes a written examination administered by the board that
tests the applicant’s ability, competency, and knowledge in the
practice of an acupuncturist. The written examination shall be
developed by the Office of Professional Examination Services of
the Department of Consumer Affairs.

(d) Is not subject to denial pursuant to Division 1.5 (commencing
with Section 475).

(e) Completes a clinical internship training program approved
by the board. The clinical internship training program shall not
exceed nine months in duration and shall be located in a clinic in
this state, which is an approved educational and training program.
The length of the clinical internship shall depend upon the grades
received in the examination and the clinical training already
satisfactorily completed by the individual prior to taking the
examination. On and after January 1, 1987, individuals with 800
or more hours of documented clinical training shall be deemed to
have met this requirement. The purpose of the clinical internship
training program shall be to ensure a minimum level of clinical
competence.

Each applicant who qualifies for a license shall pay, as a
condition precedent to its issuance and in addition to other fees
required, the initial licensure fee.

SEC. 8.  

Section 4939 of the Business and Professions Code is
amended to read:

4939.  

(a) The board shall establish standards for the approval
of schools and colleges offering education and training in the
practice of an acupuncturist, including standards for the faculty in
those schools and colleges, completion of which will satisfy the
requirements of Section 4938.

(b) Standards for the approval of schools and colleges described
in subdivision (a) shall include a minimum of 3,000 hours of study
in curriculum pertaining to the practice of an acupuncturist. This
subdivision shall apply to all students entering programs on or
after January 1, 2005.

(c) Within three years of initial approval by the board, each
school or college so approved by the board shall receive full
institutional approval under Article 6 (commencing with Section
94885) of Chapter 8 of Part 59 of Division 10 of Title 3 of the
Education Code in the field of traditional Asian medicine, or in
the case of institutions located outside of this state, approval by
the appropriate governmental educational authority using standards
equivalent to those of Article 6 (commencing with Section 94885)
of Chapter 8 of Part 59 of Division 10 of Title 3 of the Education
Code, or the board’s approval of the program shall automatically
lapse.

(d) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2017,
and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
is enacted before January 1, 2017, deletes or extends that date.

SEC. 9.  

Section 4939 is added to the Business and Professions
Code, to read:

4939.  

(a) The board shall establish standards for the begin delete approval end delete
begin insert acceptance end insert of educational training and clinical experience received
outside the United States and Canada.

(b) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2017.

SEC. 10.  

Section 4944 of the Business and Professions Code
is amended to read:

4944.  

(a) The board shall have the authority to investigate and
evaluate each and every applicant applying for a license to practice
acupuncture and to make the final determination of the admission
of the applicant to the examination, or for the issuance of a license,
in conformance with the provisions of this chapter.

(b) The board shall investigate and evaluate each school or
college applying for approval under Section 4939 and may utilize
and contract with consultants to evaluate those training programs.
This subdivision shall become inoperative on January 1, 2017.

(c) The board may delegate to the executive officer or other
official of the board its authority under this section in routine
matters.

SEC. 11.  

Section 4949 of the Business and Professions Code
is amended to read:

4949.  

The provisions of this chapter shall not prohibit an
acupuncturist from another state or country, who is not a licensed
acupuncturist in this state, who is the invited guest of a professional
acupuncture association or scientific acupuncture foundation, an
approved educational and training program, or a continuing
education provider that is approved under Section 4945, solely
from engaging in professional education through lectures, clinics,
or demonstrations. The guest acupuncturist may engage in the
practice of acupuncture in conjunction with these lectures, clinics,
or demonstrations for a maximum of six months, but may not open
an office or appoint a place to meet patients or receive calls from
patients or otherwise engage in the practice of acupuncture.

SEC. 12.  

Section 4970 of the Business and Professions Code
is amended to read:

4970.  

The amount of fees prescribed for licensed acupuncturists
shall be those set forth in this section unless a lower fee is fixed
by the board in accordance with Section 4972:

(a) The application fee shall be seventy-five dollars ($75).

(b) The examination and reexamination fees shall be the actual
cost to the Acupuncture Board for the development and writing
of, grading, and administering of each examination.

(c) The initial license fee shall be three hundred twenty-five
dollars ($325), except that if the license will expire less than one
year after its issuance, then the initial license fee shall be an amount
equal to 50 percent of the initial license fee.

(d) The renewal fee shall be three hundred twenty-five dollars
($325) and in the event a lower fee is fixed by the board, shall be
an amount sufficient to support the functions of the board in the
administration of this chapter. The renewal fee shall be assessed
on an annual basis until January 1, 1996, and on and after that date
the board shall assess the renewal fee biennially.

(e) The delinquency fee shall be set in accordance with Section
163.5.

(f) The application fee for the approval of a school or college
under Section 4939 shall be three thousand dollars ($3,000). This
subdivision shall become inoperative on January 1, 2017.

(g) The duplicate wall license fee is an amount equal to the cost
to the board for the issuance of the duplicate license.

(h) The duplicate renewal receipt fee is ten dollars ($10).

(i) The endorsement fee is ten dollars ($10).

(j) The fee for a duplicate license for an additional office
location as required under Section 4961 shall be fifteen dollars
($15).

SEC. 13.  

Section 4973 of the Business and Professions Code
is amended to read:

4973.  

(a) A fee for the inspection or reinspection of a school
or college of acupuncture for purposes of approval or continued
approval shall be charged at an amount to recover the direct costs
incurred by the board in conducting that inspection and evaluation
of the school or college.

(b) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2017,
and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
is enacted before January 1, 2017, deletes or extends that date.